Multiple Accounts same IP

I'm a moderator on the forum I'm about to speak of. I'm currently trying to figure all this out for our site Admin.
Anyway, it seems that there has been a major amount of users on our forum making multiple accounts and (seemingly) talking to themselves. I mean, I know our forum attracts the typical internet newbie, and it's main age range is around 16 years old, but this is just baffling to me that people are doing this.

One girl who shows 6 different accounts to be on her IP states that she is posting in a dorm and it's unfair that we are accusing her of talking to herself. Now, I know plenty about IP addresses. Everything I've learned and everything I've been told tells me that this just isn't possible. The IP address is not a proxy. It's a DSL connection (Road Runner), as well. This is pretty much the same with all the other multiple account-holding IP addresses registered on our forum.

She then goes on to say that we should be looking up MAC-addresses because that's more accurate. I mean, I laughed at that one good and hard because I've always thought that no one but the people within the LAN can view that. I'll admit if I'm wrong, as it will be a good learning experience.

Anyway, we've had 7 different IPs with multiple accounts that are talking to themselves (usually about the same thing and in the same threads) in the last week, alone. I've moderated plenty of forums and have maybe seen 3 in the entirety of my time as a mod. So now I'm just wondering if I'm missing something like a problem with the IP tracking software or whatever.

I just want to make sure all the bases are covered before I ridicule them any further and end up with some severe foot in mouth.

The IP's that are displayed are mostly of your ISP. There could be 6 members of your forum from a UNiversity having the Same IP Address.

so when you come a cross with someone different accounts with the same ip then members that has joined first and tell them they are only allowed one account and you are deleting all the other accounts.

Then you have to set up a members group. This will be a group for all new members, after they have posted one post they will automatically be put in the group that will grant them access to the rest of the forum.

Now you have to create a welcome board,This will be where all new members must post and say hello first, Until they post there and get in the members group they will not have any access to the rest of the forum.

By doing this, you will be able to check all ip of new members and see if they match with any other accounts/user using the same ip. so if you see they have a account already simply delete the new account.

Now bare in mind it is possible sometimes you will get siblings or some people from the same ip address, If the girl said she is in a collage dorm, it could be that there are a few sharing the same computer account.

So this is something you will have to determine for your self.
Most of the time when you have multi accounts with the same ip, it is just someone making more accounts.. But this is not always the case for what i have just mentioned above.

But thats about all you can do and you have to make the call for what you think is best

Doesn't that cause a conflict with the modem if they are using wireless, though?
I know in my network that if any two computers are utilizing the same IP, we end up getting a "There is an IP address conflict with another computer on the network".
I'm not trying to be snarky, I promise. Just trying to figure it out completely (I'm a tad obsessive over things that perplex me). I know that if two people end up with the same IP on our network, it gets all unpredictable and wonky. Usually ending in one of the computers being unable to view the internet. This isn't the case with all networks, I'm assuming, though?

For further information, the person is posting from the same system and OS, meaning that it's quite possible that it's the very same computer. While it could be a computer station, wouldn't it still interfere with the connectivity?

The IP being displayed is the IP of your Internet Service Provider.

A computer in conflict with the same IP on a wireless network is a different thing.

kirk wrote:By doing this, you will be able to check all ip of new members and see if they match with any other accounts/user using the same ip. so if you see they have a account already simply delete the new account.

Thankfully this person is continually speaking to themselves, sometimes coming in with the new account where the other account left off.

I think I'm more just trying provide technical "proof" when it comes down to removing multiples on the forum. I don't want to turn away long-time members, but I also feel that multiple accounts are just absurd. I'm not an "action on assumptions" type of gal, and this one is really racking my brain. My suspicions are on the high-end, but I'd like to have solid evidence if I'm going to go as far as banning the IPs in question.

Sanket wrote:The IP being displayed is the IP of your Internet Service Provider.
A computer in conflict with the same IP on a wireless network is a different thing.

I suppose I assumed she was posting from a wireless network due to her saying that she is using her college's internet (a detail I should have included). She has posted from two different sets of IPs from the same neighborhood (one ending in .1 and the other ending in .6), and the other accounts have done the same.

Now, that being said, there is another person posting from a phone (Cingular wireless) and claiming that they are not the 8 other accounts using that IP, as well. Are those possible to be shared, as well?

RJBMama, if you want to ban a member just ban them if you wish to. You cannot confirm it in any way whether the user is a different user or a user having multiple accounts by just using the Forumotion's IP tool.

I would say, if the user is not creating a mess why to worry about it?

One more way to check if the users are lying, check their locations in their profiles. If it mentions they are from different countries but having the same IP's. Then its not possible.

hi im the girl that she's talking about. she won't stop bothering me about this and i think it's even more crazy that she's trying to "crack down" on "haters" considering she's an old lady bullying alot of us users with her "mod status".
it's not even a legit forum it's a complete gossip site called gurugossip.net it's not even worth bullying members about and over and i don't see why she won't stop going on about it.

like a few people on here have stated, i told her the same thing but keeps denying this fact and is trying to get other people to bully me on there.
i can't help it. i live in a college dorm where else am i suppose to get the internet? starbucks? yeah well it's 15 minutes away.

it's just not fair that these stuck up mods on a gossip site are trying to play god by bullying people around.

also, i haven't done anything in the wrong. like i've said it's a gurugossip site, i go and rave or trash on youtube gurus like these mods and other people do. i just don't get or see what the big problem is.

oh wait, she's mad because i disagreed with her and called her an old lady and that her bf works at an at&t call center... yeah that's why she's mad but hey, it's true. why is an old lady even on a "mostly 16 yr old girls talking to themselves" forum anyhow? and i hate how she brags that her bf is a super computer admin and that she's a computer tech and admin. gee i wonder why she's on here then to assure herself that she's right.... way to lie about that RBJMAMA.

thanks to those who only proved my point to her even more, maybe she'll stop harassing me.

by the way, she's a liar because she cussed me out. she is in no way trying to help anyone but just to humilate innocent members on gurugossip.

also, i just want to add that it's very possible that many other girls in my university/dorms also go to gurugossip. it's a massive gossip site. whos to say that im the only one at my university/dorms that goes here? it's bizzare how she's just wanting to accuse me.

sarahmonster wrote:hi im the girl that she's talking about. she won't stop bothering me about this and i think it's even more crazy that she's trying to "crack down" on "haters" considering she's an old lady bullying alot of us users with her "mod status".
it's not even a legit forum it's a complete gossip site called gurugossip.net it's not even worth bullying members about and over and i don't see why she won't stop going on about it.

like a few people on here have stated, i told her the same thing but keeps denying this fact and is trying to get other people to bully me on there.
i can't help it. i live in a college dorm where else am i suppose to get the internet? starbucks? yeah well it's 15 minutes away.

it's just not fair that these stuck up mods on a gossip site are trying to play god by bullying people around.

also, i haven't done anything in the wrong. like i've said it's a gurugossip site, i go and rave or trash on youtube gurus like these mods and other people do. i just don't get or see what the big problem is.

oh wait, she's mad because i disagreed with her and called her an old lady and that her bf works at an at&t call center... yeah that's why she's mad but hey, it's true. why is an old lady even on a "mostly 16 yr old girls talking to themselves" forum anyhow? and i hate how she brags that her bf is a super computer admin and that she's a computer tech and admin. gee i wonder why she's on here then to assure herself that she's right.... way to lie about that RBJMAMA.

thanks to those who only proved my point to her even more, maybe she'll stop harassing me.

by the way, she's a liar because she cussed me out. she is in no way trying to help anyone but just to humilate innocent members on gurugossip.

sarahmonster wrote:also, i just want to add that it's very possible that many other girls in my university/dorms also go to gurugossip. it's a massive gossip site. whos to say that im the only one at my university/dorms that goes here? it's bizzare how she's just wanting to accuse me.

Oh my.

With all due respect.We do not get involved with issues like this here.
That is something for you and the forums staff or admins to work out if you are having differences, The question was about multiple accounts with users from the same IP. We answered what we could, and thats all we can do, It's up to the forums staff and admin to run the forum they way they want and decide what to do from that point on.

We are here for forumotion forums support to help those that have forumotion forums.If the forum is about all gossip or whatever, then thats fine,but please dont bring all that over here.This is not the place for it nor will we allow it.

With that being said, the question has been answered and there no reason to leave this thread open any longer.

Topic now marked and locked.